Culture Abounds in O!-maha

I sincerely hope that you have all been busy enjoying the Olympic Swim Trials hosted right here in our very own backyard.  Diana and Katarina were fortunate enough to attend EVERY session so be sure to check out Katarina's previous blog with pictures and highlights and more to come from Katarina and Diana summarizing their adventures of the exciting meet. 

In the mean time, I have been making what will hopefully be helpful changes to our blog.  Check out the columns on either side of our blog to see relevant videos, links to local bars, restaurants, local attractions, festivals, and other fun things we think you might like more information about.  One specific thing I'd like to highlight is our "Upcoming Events" section in the upper right hand column. These will be updated regularly with cool events that will be going on in the Omaha area so if there's something you'd like us to include, just comment at the bottom and we'll add a link.  That being said, all of the events listed in this section are direct links to the web sites of said events which should be helpful as you all plan your own Omaha adventures.

Since I last posted, I have been enjoying much of the culture Omaha has to offer.  Piggy-backing on the Olympic Swim Trials, Diana, Laura, Katarina and I enjoyed the giant swimmer statue built on the Mutual of Omaha lawn on Dodge Street (just East of 33rd).  In addition to the awesome swimmer, Mutual of Omaha also hosted a 3D Display of patriotic images and accompanying music that played throughout the swim trials on repeat every night.  (See the video link on the side bar of our blog page).  We can only expect more amazing support from Mutual of Omaha with future Swim Trials.  Thank you to Mutual of Omaha for providing yet another amazing attraction to we Omahans as well as our out-of-town visitors!

Speaking of amazing local sponsors, I also had a chance to hit another map point--The Omaha Children's Museum.  Local sponsors make many of their exhibits possible.  For example, Con Agra sponsors the "Little Market," an area that allows children to experience pretend play at it's finest with a pint-sized grocery store with everything from check out lanes to cash registers to shopping carts.  (If you want more information on some of the other awesome things Con Agra does in terms of helping the community and people all over who are fighting hunger, check out their web site. By buying certain marked Con Agra products, you can help support those in need.
http://www.conagrafoodsfoundation.org/index.jsp)  The little market is just one of many permanent exhibits at the museum.  Others include a two-story children's house, a craft area, a stage where children can paint faces and play dress up, a play pizza restaurant, and a ball room.

Farmhouse was another sponsor at the Omaha Children Museum's Wizard of Oz exhibit, which is their current traveling exhibit running until September 9.  Farmhouse Cafe sponsors Dorothy's black and white farmhouse which is another opportunity for children to learn through pretend play.  Play plinko with chicken eggs, make jewelry in the emerald city, dress up like your favorite Wizard of Oz characters, and even play in the witch's castle.  Even more fun than that?!  Step inside a tornado!  Farmhouse Cafe is also a great place to grab some food.  It is attached to one of the coolest party supply stores you will ever enter--Manglesens (which will be featured in a future blog) on Center Street, just East of 84th Street.  They have great food, delicious homemade pastries and a very friendly staff.  (My mother and her friends have become regulars there and they have taken to exchanging holiday gifts with their regular waitress--very much an example of how welcoming and friendly Omahans can be!)  www.farmhousecafe.com/

As I mentioned above, I have been living the Omaha culture these last few weeks and although playing is fun, it is also important to know the history of where you live, so for this, I went to the Durham Western Heritage Museum.  Housed at what was once a train station on 10th Street, just South of the Old Market, the Durham Western Heritage Museum houses Omaha's history.  Everything from the days of the Native American tribes to the importance the Union Pacific Railroad played in the development of the area to an Union Pacific train that you can walk through.  Did you know Omaha hosted a World's Fair in 1898?!  See the picture below--that archway sure does look like the archway by the slides in the Gene Leahy Mall...   And as the wife of a bar owner, I couldn't go without reporting on Omaha's rich beer history.  We were once the home of some great German beers such as Storz and Metz.  Check out their stories at the Durham.   Many of the exhibits involve a fair amount of reading and would be more engaging for older children, but the 20+ foot long model train set with audio of what life was like in the early 1900s, even toddlers can be entertained at this historic museum. Laura reported on the Mindbender Mansion, their current traveling exhibit, which will be available until September 2.  Check out their web site for information on a variety of historical tours of the city hosted by Durham.  http://www.durhammuseum.org/

Laura also wrote about our AWESOME experience watching the original Karate Kid on the lawn at the Holland.  Just another example of campanies partnering in the area to help create memorable experiences here in Omaha.  Check out their web site for other upcoming outdoor movies this summer sponsored by Cox.    http://www.omahaperformingarts.org/series/details.aspx?ID=19
While you're there at their site, check out their upcoming ticketed events.In addition to the movies, you can come early and hear live local music.  We were fortunate enough to hear All Young Girls Are Machine Guns. They had somewhat of a folky vibe with ukuleles, drums, guitars shaped like machine guns--check them out:  http://www.reverbnation.com/allyounggirlsaremachineguns

Last but DEFINITELY not least, I was one of the 30 lucky few who attended the Lot 2/Lauter Tun beer pairing dinner on June 24th.  Chad Rozniecki, owner of the Lauter Tun (and my loving husband), chose 4 styles of beer and met with the chef at Lot 2 to determine a menu that would compliment the beer (and vice versa).  The menu included a scalllp with cauliflower, arugula, parmesan and lemon paired with Nebraska Brewing Company's EOS Hefewiezen.  The second course was chicken with a sweet potato succotash and peach habanero bbq, paired with Ommegang Belgian Pale Ale.  The third course was pork with white beans, braiseed grees, sausage, golden raisins and it was paired with Sierra Nevada Ovila Abbey Dubbel.  The grand finale was a chocolate pot au creme, lavendar cookie and truffle paired with Abita Purple Haze Raspberry Wheat.  I can't say enough good things about the experience.  If you've never heard of pairing beer with food, think wine and cheese... only better and in some cases, much more complex.  The chef did an excellent job with the food and Chad chose some excellent beers.  Check out Lot 2 in Benson for great food and other pairings www.lot2benson.com/.  If you're interested in beer, check out The Lauter Tun for upcoming events including the king of all beer classes at the Siebel Sensory class, a beer and cheese pairing with Lucky Bucket, and a 20's party to celebrate the early days of craft beer in America, ALL BEFORE THE END OF JULY!!!  http://www.thelautertun.com/  And for those of you out there looking for another awesome blog, check out www.beervanaomaha.blogspot.com

I think I have sufficiently overwhelmed you all by now.  We hope you're enjoying and we look forward to hearing some of your adventures along the way.

Enjoy this 4th of July readers and God Bless America!

Your Omaha Stalkers